Juwan Simpson trudged out of the trainer’s room Friday night to find his cellphone lit up with messages of profound concern.

“Family, friends, fans — they all reached out,” the Calgary Stampeders linebacker said Sunday. “I felt very special in a weird kind of way. You don’t want to get acknowledged for being hurt, but thank you people. Thank you.

“I was just tired. I needed a rest. I’m all right.”

That last part may be pushing the truth, given head coach/general manager John Hufnagel confirmed Simpson hurt his arm and suffered a hip pointer in a 10-7 victory over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

Still, Simpson expects to play Thursday in Edmonton.

“I’ll bounce back,” said Simpson, who registered eight tackles in a dominant performance against Hamilton. “In this game we play, you get a lot of bumps and bruises. If whatever happened to me happened in the first quarter, I probably would have came back out and played. It just happened at an awkward at the end of the game.

“It’s nothing I suspect will give me any trouble.”

Linebacker Deron Mayo (hamstring) is expected to draw back into the lineup this week. Linebacker Keon Raymond (thigh bruise) is questionable as is cornerback Buddy Jackson (hamstring.)

GARCIA FOLLOWING BO

News of Bo Levi Mitchell’s assault on a Jeff Garcia record has reached the man himself down in San Diego.

Mitchell needs just one victory to the mark of seven wins to start a CFL quarterbacking career set back in 1995.

“I’d love to see Bo go 18-0 and get himself a Grey Cup,” Garcia told the Stampeders website at stampeders.com. “I know the offence struggled a bit the other night against Hamilton, but I texted Bo to remind him that the bottom line was getting the victory.

“Wins are so precious and you have to savour them, no matter how they come. It’s all about finding a way to win and, obviously, Bo is doing just that.”

With an eye to taking over as the full-time starter in Calgary, Mitchell attended Garcia’s quarterback school this past winter alongside elite quarterbacks including Matt McGloin of the Oakland Raiders, Tyrod Taylor of the Baltimore Ravens and Matt Scott of the Cincinnati Bengals.

“I give Bo all the credit in the world,” Garcia, a seven-time Pro Bowler, told the Stamps website. “He took it upon himself to come out and try to make himself a better quarterback. Of course, I had a connection with the Calgary Stampeders and with guys like Dave Dickenson and John Hufnagel, but this was all about Bo making the decision for himself and putting in the work that was needed on the field and in the classroom.

“He took a month away from his girlfriend and his family so that he could come down to San Diego and work hard and compete.”

PIVOTAL PLAY

In Friday’s 10-7 victory over Hamilton, Mitchell just stood back and watched the play of the game unfold courtesy of another quarterback at heart, Brad Sinopoli.

In his second season as a receiver, Sinopoli took an end-around from Mitchell and looked to throw down field. With a defender in his face, he tucked the ball and shimmied 27 yards around several would-be tacklers to the end zone.

“That’s the benefit of having a quarterback at receiver right there,” Mitchell said. “He’s a heady guy. He’s smart. He made a great play.

“He had to turn really athletic right there to break a couple tackles, turn up the field and get a touchdown on a play that probably shouldn’t have been.”

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